July 7, 2009
To the Honorable Members of the
Illinois House of Representatives
96th General Assembly:
In accordance with
Article IV, Section 9 (b) of the Illinois Constitution, I return to the House
of Representatives House Bill 2145, with this statement of my objections,
vetoed in its entirety.
As I stated last week
in vetoing Senate Bill 1197, balancing our State’s budget will require making
tough choices. This legislation I am vetoing today does not make significant
cuts in spending, and, as a result, fails to solve Illinois’ budget crisis. It
does not require the shared sacrifices necessary to achieving a balanced budget
that is decent and humane. This spirit of shared sacrifice is especially
needed during a time of economic hardship. I am therefore vetoing House Bill
2145 in its entirety because I believe that it is part of a flawed overall approach
to budget-making.
House Bill 2145
violates the requirement of Article IV, Section 8(d) of the Illinois
Constitution that “appropriation bills shall be limited to the subject of
appropriations.” Ill. Const.,
Article IV, Section 8(d). Appropriations bills cannot contain provisions which
purport to change the existing substantive law. Benjamin v. Devon Bank,
68 Ill. 2d 142, 148 (1977). Nor may an appropriation bill restrict the use of
funds not previously appropriated. People ex. rel. Kirk v. Lindberg, 59
Ill. 2d 38, 41-42 (1974). Thus, appropriations bills may not include
substantive provisions. Valstad v. Cipriano, 357 Ill. App. 3d 905, 920
(2005). Accordingly, appropriation bills may only allocate money for specific
purposes. Bd. of Trustees of Comm. Coll. Dist. No. 508 v. Burris, 118 Ill. 2d 465, 477-78 (1987).
House Bill 2145 goes beyond setting apart certain amounts of money for specific
purposes by attempting to restrict the use of funds not previously
appropriated. Specifically, this bill purports to prohibit the expenditure of
appropriated funds for “professional and artistic services.” Provisions
banning the use of funds on professional and artistic services appear throughout
the legislation. These provisions clearly attempt to restrict the use of funds
not previously appropriated, and, therefore run afoul of Article IV, Section
8(d) as interpreted by the Illinois Supreme Court in Kirk. See Kirk,
59 Ill. 2d at 41-42.
Second, House Bill 2145 purports to modify existing statute by
prohibiting the transfer of funds between line items. This provision flatly
contradicts Section 13.2 of the State Finance Act, 30 ILCS 5/13.2, a statute
that specifically authorizes such transfers. In Benjamin v. Devon Bank,
our Supreme Court held that including language in an appropriation bill that
modifies existing statute violates Article IV, Section 8(d). Benjamin,
68 Ill. 2d at 148.
Therefore, in accordance with the oath of office in which I swore to
support the Constitution of Illinois, required by Article XIII, Section 3 of
the Constitution; the Governor's supreme executive authority established by
Article V, Section 8 of the Constitution; my duty to faithfully execute the
laws as set forth in Article V, Section 8 of the Constitution; and my authority
to act upon legislation pursuant to Article IV, Section 9, I hereby expressly disapprove
all provisions of House Bill 2145 that contain or relate to subjects other than
appropriations.
I am hopeful
that through collaboration and cooperation, we can reach a mutually agreeable
resolution of our budgetary challenges. My goal remains a fair and
comprehensive state budget that serves the fundamental needs of the people of Illinois.
Sincerely,
PAT QUINN
Governor